TEHRAN (Realist English). The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has warned the ruling circles of Turkey and Azerbaijan against an armed attack on Armenia.
“Any military invasion of Armenia will receive a response from the Iranian armed forces. The Islamic Republic of Iran has repeatedly stated that it will not tolerate changes in the borders of neighboring countries,” the IRGC’s official telegram channel said.
The statement from Tehran came amid escalating tensions in the east of Armenia – in Artsakh and on the western line of contact between Armenia and Nakhichevan, temporarily occupied by Turkish-Azerbaijani formations.
Earlier, the pro-government Baku newspaper Yeni Musavat announced its territorial claims to Armenia: “The so-called Armenian state has been artificially created in the historical territories of Azerbaijan, and Baku has the right to demand the return of the historical territories of Azerbaijan. Since Armenia is one of our historical lands, we have the right to return it to the control of our homeland.”
The aggressive aspirations of Baku and Ankara towards the Armenian Artsakh and Syunik are gaining momentum due to the gradual withdrawal of Iran from international sanctions that were imposed against the Islamic Republic under the guise of combating its nuclear program. The United States and the EU have taken a course to lift all sanctions that have been crippling the Iranian economy for decades. This causes alarm in Israel, Turkey and Azerbaijan, which are trying to restrain the socio-economic development of Iran with various provocations.
According to Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahiyan, the revival of the nuclear deal between Tehran and 6 international mediators is closer than ever.
“If the United States acts pragmatically, we are ready for the foreign ministers of the countries that are members of the joint commission on the nuclear deal to meet in Vienna to finalize the agreement. We believe that today we are closer to an agreement in Vienna than ever before,” said the head of Iranian diplomacy, speaking at a press conference in Damascus on March 23.
